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Use this skill to seek out answers to questions, or "get the lay of the land" – rumors, information, etc. that could prove useful.

Check: An evening’s time, a few gold pieces for buying drinks and making friends, and a DC 10 Gather Information check gets a PC a general idea of a city’s major news items, assuming there are no obvious reasons why the information would be withheld. The higher the check result, the better the information – a good rule of thumb is that for every 10 points by which the PC succeeds, he can gain an additional piece of information, or reduce the number of gold spent to find it (DM's option).

If the PC wants to find out about a specific rumor, or a specific item, or obtain a map, or do something else along those lines, the DC for the check is 15 to 25, or even higher (see the table below).

Rarity of
Information

Example

DC

Time1

Cost

Chance
of Attention2

Widely known

The name of the local leader (city, county, nation, etc.).

5

1d2 hours3

1d4 gp

0%

Common

The latest rumors.

10

1d4+1 hours

2d6 gp

5%

Uncommon

The identity of a spellcaster who can identify a magic item or divine its history.

15

2d4 hours

3d6 gp

15%

Rare

The name of the head of a prominent noble family that died out 100 years ago.

25

3d4 hours

4d6 gp

25%

Obscure

The location of the local assassins' guild.

35

3d6 hours

5d6 gp

35%

Very obscure

A map to a crypt whose location has been lost for 500+ years.

45

4d8 hours

10d10 gp

45%

1 It could take several days to find particularly obscure information, depending on how long the PC spends searching each day.

2 This is the chance that a PC will draw unwanted attention; the source of such attention is up to the DM. For example, asking around about the local thieves' guild will incur a visit from one of their members; seeking information on a lost crypt, on the other hand, may alert other treasure seekers, who could follow the PC and ambush him and his friends when they find the place. The chance can be increased or decreased, at the DM's discretion – asking about a smuggling operation in a city known for its harsh laws has a greater chance of drawing the wrath of the city watch than going to a place with looser security. On the other hand, asking around about someone who's been dead for 100 years and wasn't all that important would likely draw little, if any, attention.

3 For extremely easy questions, the DM could rule that it takes less than an hour and the gp cost is halved.

The PC can reduce the chance of drawing suspicion by taking a penalty to his check equal to the percentage chance to be reduced. For example, someone wishing to reduce his chance by 10% would take a -10 penalty.

Action: See above.

Try Again: Yes, but it takes time for each check. Furthermore, the chance of a PC drawing attention to himself increases by 5% each time if he repeatedly pursues a certain type of information.